Volume 5 Chapter 0119 All this is within your calculation! - I, The Dragon Overlord

In the Pantheon, silence reigned among the gods. No one spoke; no one uttered a sound. Marzlis rose from the ruins of the stone pillars, his silver armor nearly shattered, his form gradually becoming ethereal. This was the state of a divine incarnation nearing dissolution after suffering a fatal onslaught. In Marzlis's current condition, it was unfeasible for his incarnation to continue battling Louie. Should he wish to persist in combat, other incarnations would need to be summoned. However, Louie would undoubtedly not allow such reinforcements, especially since Louie's presence here was merely an incarnation as well. With the deities' connections of faith already severed, Marzlis suffered from a lack of replenishing divine power, while Louie, having connected to the Sea of Origin, possessed boundless divine power. Even if Marzlis were to summon both his incarnation and true form to fight until the bitter end, he could at most destroy only one or two of Louie's incarnations, leaving Louie's true form unharmed. The situation was clear to even the weakest of divine powers, not to mention those with greater might. The skirmish between the two war gods and Louie had conveyed the terrifying realization of this 'Majesty' through a mere couple of attacks. As the Morninglord had stated, the tyrant's dictatorship could no longer be thwarted by a single god or even a coalition of several. Only a united front of all major and intermediate divine powers might pull this tyrant from his throne and cause his downfall in the Astral Plane. Yet, in this widespread divine melee, which god would willingly fall? No god wished to take the lead, none wished to become a sacrifice. If even a couple of gods hesitated or chose to submit, it was assured the other gods could no longer rebel against the tyrant. This was almost a hopeless scenario, making it impossible for the divine to unite in a common cause! Some gods sighed, acknowledging that the rise of a ruler perhaps had become an unstoppable trend, while others felt unwilling but helpless against it. Shar, the Goddess of Darkness, concealed her peerless beauty in a veil of dark mist. She gritted her pearly teeth, her face cast in discontent, cursing the folly of the other gods for focusing too much on guarding against her. Because of this, a god wielding the power of Order managed to ascend to a divine rank of 20 before being noticed—or rather, he intentionally revealed himself. She also realized her own fault, perhaps the so-called oversight from proximity. She had been relying on Louie's protection to evade the gods' pursuits, keeping her gaze ever away from this powerful deity. Reflecting upon it now, the many anomalies during this dragon god's ascension in divine rank should have alerted the gods long ago to his oddities. His wielding of Order's force shortly after becoming a major divine power had aroused suspicion amongst some, but none expected him to deceive them using the guise of extraterrestrial civilizations. Presently, many gods were piecing together Louie's connection with the terran civilization. It seemed plausible that this dragon god had learned of some weapons from that alien civilization to deceive the gods. Otherwise, why would so many coincidences align? When this dragon god rose to a mighty divine power, the force of Order manifested, following which wreckage from extraterrestrial civilization's weapons appeared. Not long ago, when those alien weapons once again targeted San Soliel, this god reacted faster than anyone else to defend the Prime Material Plane. Subsequently, he proposed that all gods should vow and sign a treaty, which the gods considered reasonable, leading to the signing of the 'Tablets of Fate.' The result was that all gods fell under this dragon's dominion, manipulated by him through that Tablet's power over their faith. Such a cascade of fortuitous coincidences could not be mere chance. While there were mad gods, they weren't witless. If they failed to discern the truth by now, they would have lived in ignorance for far too long. The supposed invasion of San Soliel by foreign civilizations was likely an elaborate lie, a theatrical play directed by this god to fool all gods! "No wonder he is the god of fraud and schemes; he's far more terrifying than the prince of lies ever was." Newly risen deities had never witnessed the magnificence of the prince of lies deceiving the gods, but they now observed Louie manipulating the entire pantheon with remarkable ease. This realization brought some relief among the weaker gods. If this notion of alien civilizations invading San Soliel was all a ruse and those civilizations didn't exist, there was a chance they might survive. Confronting Louie’s tyranny was preferable to death; thus, submission did not seem dishonorable. Considering the circumstances, it seemed inevitable that all gods might submit to him. Upon reaching this conclusion, many gods exhaled in acceptance, their stance becoming indifferent. The divine faction splintered immediately, and when some gods contemplated rallying to challenge Louie, few would heed the call. The situation was now crystal clear, and the gods could only commend that all this might have been in Louie's grand design. He was indeed a fearsome dragon; in fact, the gods began to doubt whether he truly was a dragon. Such cunning, treachery, and guile surpassed even the vilest of evil dragons. While dragons were inherently proud, this arrogance often derailed otherwise flawless schemes. But this dragon god was different, likely feigning arrogance merely for the success of his plans. The pantheon stood in awe of Louie, some gods even begrudgingly respecting him. To possess such meticulousness, immense power, and fortuitous fate, ascending to the apex appeared to be his rightful destiny. As the gods exchanged glances, looking around in awkward silence, wondering who would first break the quiet and step forward in surrender, it was the Goddess of Darkness, Shar, who took a step forth. As a deity, she did not kneel; instead, she lifted her skirt slightly in a graceful bow, performing a noble's curtsy with a voice as cold and enshrouded as the night, "…Your Majesty Louie!" Shar, who had been fuming moments before, was now the quickest to set aside her pride and acknowledge Louie's dominance. This spectacle stunned the gods and even gave Louie pause. He had anticipated a god would take the initiative to submit, subsequently leading the others to follow suit, but never would he have guessed it would be Shar—known for her loftiness and ambition. However, upon reflection, Louie realized Shar's intentions. At this juncture, Louie's ascent to rulership was seemingly inevitable. Shar's sudden declaration of loyalty sent a signal to the other gods. They would surely perceive an alliance or long-time collusion between Shar and Louie, assuming this to be merely part of their grand scheme. With Shar facing condemnation from all gods, previously only a mere mighty divine power like Louie wouldn’t have deterred them from persecuting Shar. But now that Louie seemed destined for kingship, as Louie's most 'loyal' subordinate, the other gods would likely seek a peaceful coexistence with Shar out of fear of Louie’s wrath. With a simple statement, Shar had unraveled her predicaments entirely, ensuring her eventual return to a mighty divine status. Reflecting on this, Louie silently acknowledged the dark goddess's astuteness. Fortunately, she had remained a medium divine power, and due to incidents from three millennia ago, the gods had grown distrustful of her. Otherwise, if she had been a mighty divine power, Louie might have had his greatest rival; any oversight and she might have deduced the truth, leading to his downfall. But now, it no longer mattered because Louie had already declared “checkmate” in this game of celestial chess!